Maldives has partnered with Singapore Airlines to jointly promote tourism and boost visitor arrivals to the island nation.

At a ceremony held at Hotel Jen in capital Male Sunday afternoon, state tourism promotion body Maldives Marketing and Public Relations Corporation (MMPRC) and Singapore Airlines signed a one-year agreement. MMPRC Managing Director Thoyyib Mohamed and Singapore Airline’s Senior Vice President of Sales and Marketing Campbell Wilson signed the agreement.

Under the one-year agreement, each organisation will invest USD 180,000 in cash and USD 40,000 to fund activities such as roadshows, joint marketing campaigns and familiarisation trips for media and travel industry representatives. The activities are aimed at visitors from Singapore, Australia, China, Japan, South Korea and the United States.

Tourist arrivals to the Maldives increased by 6.8 per cent year-on-year to 1.48 million for calendar year 2018. Since 2017, more than 30 per cent of annual tourist arrivals to the Maldives have come from the six markets targeted by the campaign.

After signing the agreement, Thoyyib told reporters that the campaign done in partnership with Singapore Airlines will address a key component of his corporation’s strategy for 2019.

“I am very excited that the Maldives and SIA have embarked on a joint marketing venture for the very first time. This is a huge step forward for us in our effort to promote the destination. I have no doubt that our partnership with such a prestigious airline will create incredible synergy and help raise the profile of the destination Maldives – the ‘Sunny Side of Life,” he said.

Campbell said this partnership enables the airline group to play a more active role in promoting sustainable tourism growth to the Maldives.

“We are pleased to be working with MMPRC to boost travel to the Maldives. With nearly 140 destinations in more than 35 countries and territories in the SIA Group network, we are also well-placed to support the development of the Maldives’ tourism sector,” he said.

Singapore Airlines, consistently ranked as the world’s best airline, first flew to the Maldives in March 1984 with a weekly Singapore-Male service, whilst regional wing SilkAir launched four-times-weekly services in October 2015. Singapore Airlines and SilkAir currently operate a total of 16 weekly services to Male, offering convenient connections to other destinations in the SIA and SilkAir network.